As health-care costs have risen, 401(k) employer contributions
have fallen and other perks have become more expensive,
entrepreneurs have searched for inexpensive ways to boost staff
morale. Now, some companies have found a way--in the kitchen. Polly
Talbott, 54, owner and director of A la Carte Culinary
Services Ltd. in Long Island, New York, says the number of
companies coming to her for employee cooking classes has risen
sharply in the past five years. "People are realizing the
corporate benefits of classes," Talbott says.

Talbott's experience isn't unique. The famed Institute
of Culinary Education in New York City has reported a 30 percent
increase in corporate bookings over the past two years, and several
other culinary institutes are developing corporate programs.

The cooking classes can also be a way of building team morale.
"The groups have to work together to plan the menu, like a
[corporate] project, but it takes them out of the workplace,"
says Talbott. "Someone who's the boss at work now has to
ask people for help; everyone has to work together. And if the food
they make turns out badly, they can always stop at a diner on the
way home."